Luke Evans and Daniel Bruhl, stars of The Alienist, are reuniting with the team behind the TNT Emmy nominated limited series for an untitled dramedy feature inspired by the 2006 French film Mon Meilleur Ami (My Best Friend). Evans and Bruhl will star in the film based on an adaptation by Alienist co-showrunner and exec producer and E Max Frye. Rosalie Swedlin (Alienist EP) is producing the project with Bard Dorros of Anonymous Content.
Directed by Patrice Leconte, the original pic centered on two very different men – one arrogant and cold, the other sweet and talkative – whose lives are thrown together when one accepts a bet to find a best friend and the other agrees to teach him the secret to making friends.
“This remake of the very charming French film Mon Meilleur Ami is a perfect opportunity to bring the dream team back together I enjoyed so much working with on The Alienist,” said Bruhl. “Luke Evans, Max Frye, Rosalie Swedlin and Anonymous Content, superb!”
“It’s a wonderful thing when you get to continue working with talented and creative artists with whom you have already achieved success,” commented Evans. “Daniel Bruhl and I have had an extraordinary journey together on The Alienist, we have a great mutual respect for one another, he’s also a friend, so it’s exciting to take our creative partnership into a new arena.”
Added Frye: “Working with Luke and Daniel on The Alienist was one of the most creatively satisfying experiences of my professional career, and I can’t think of a more perfectly different follow-up story to tell with them than this one.”
Evans, who played Gaston in Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast film and starred in Universal’s The Fate of the Furious, is repped by WME and United Agents in the UK. Bruhl, repped by WME and Tavistock Wood, is known for pics like Captain America: Civil War and Inglourious Basterds.
WME and Anonymous Content reps Frye, who was nominated for an Oscar for penning the original screenplay for Foxcatcher.
The deal was negotiated by Agnes Mentre on behalf of her new label Remake&Co. [Source]
Welsh actor Luke Evans has said his new Netflix series The Alienist shows how little the world has changed since the 19th century.
The Beauty And The Beast star plays an illustrator in the period crime drama about a ritualistic killer.
Speaking at a launch event for the show in Rome, he said: “We have come a long, long way but when you see a story that is fictional but based on a real moment in New York’s history, you see we haven’t come very far at all in many ways.
“The class division, the rich and the poor, immigration problems, the police force being corrupted in New York City, a power struggle, you see it all being represented very closely, quite historically accurately.
“People compare things to modern day and we still see some of those problems now, so it’s very interesting.”
Evans stars in the show opposite Daniel Bruhl, as the alienist of the title, and Dakota Fanning as the first female employee of the New York Police Department.
Fanning added: “Especially at this time, it’s important to see strong female characters.
“Since this is set so long ago it’s unique to see tough strong-willed characters in that time period, because there were so many things females weren’t allowed to do in that time period.
“It’s important for present generations to learn from the past and observe the past and you see the adversity that she faces in the workplace and among her male counterparts and peers and that is a big part of the series and has really resonated with people in the States and I hope it does overseas.”
The Alienist will stream on Netflix on April 19. [Source]
Lionsgate and EuropaCorp have closed a co-production deal for Besson’s next action film, which will be titled “Anna.” Lionsgate will also distribute the pic.
EuropaCorp will produce the film, while Lionsgate will distribute it. The movie starts production this November and will be released under Lionsgate’s Summit Entertainment label.
The pic stars Helen Mirren, Luke Evans, Cillian Murphy, and newcomer Sasha Luss, as Anna.
“We are delighted to be reunited with Luc and his EuropaCorp team on another exciting, action-packed film featuring an A-list cast,” said Lionsgate MPG chairman Patrick Wachsberger and president of acquisitions and co-productions Jason Constantine. “Luc is a visionary filmmaker with whom we are proud to extend our longstanding relationship.” [Source]
